Nabby shines in West loss

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Western Conference goaltender Evgeni Nabokov (20), of Russia and the San Jose Sharks, sticks aside a shot by Eastern Conference defenseman Brian Campbell (51), of the Buffalo Sabres during the second period of the NHL All-Star hockey game Sunday, Jan. 27, 2008 in Atlanta. (AP Photo/John Bazemore)

ATLANTA — Evgeni Nabokov did the near impossible Sunday night. He almost single-handedly turned a boring goalfest of an NHL All-Star contest into an actual hockey game.

When the Sharks goalie took the ice at the start of the second period, his West team was trailing 5-1. All Nabokov did was blank the East for the next 20 minutes — twice making spectacular saves to rob Atlanta Thrashers forward Ilya Kovalchuk in front of his home-ice crowd at Philips Arena.

Ultimately, the West’s comeback failed and the East won the game 8-7 with Carolina forward Eric Staal taking home the 2008 Dodge Journey as MVP.

Kovalchuk himself thought Nabokov could easily have been the one with new wheels.

“Nabby was one of those guys who can get the MVP tonight, too,” Kovalchuk said. “He played an unbelievable 20-minute shutout.”

The two showdowns late in the second period between Nabokov and Kovalchuk — teammates for Russia at the 2006 Turin Olympics — were classic.

With just over a minute left, a sequence of passes set Kovalchuk up for a clean shot from 23 feet out and the puck seemed destined for the upper corner of the net.

“You can call it a lucky save or whatever because the whole top shelf was open,” Nabokov said. “I just tried to swing my glove and it ended up in my glove.”

Kovalchuk said it wasn’t a matter of luck.

“You need to be good to be lucky,” he said. “You need to be in that kind of position, right time and right place to make those kind of saves.”

The second save came with one second left in the period and Kovalchuk on a breakaway. Nabokov dropped horizontal on the ice and slid across the crease to keep the puck out of the net.

Normally, goalies talk about hockey being a game of reading the play and reacting. Not this time.

“To be honest with you, I knew what I was going to do regardless of what he was going to do,” Nabokov said. “If he would pick the top shelf, it would be a highlight goal and good for him. But I knew exactly what I was going to do.”

Kovalchuk showed his frustration — at one point he threw his stick, at another he remained flat on the ice — but he also grabbed Nabokov and hugged him.

“He just said, ‘Great save,'” the Sharks goalie said.

Later, Kovalchuk paid tribute to his nemesis in net.

“He’s really good for a small guy,” Kovalchuk said, “and it’s tough to beat those kind of guys that play in All-Star Games. I am going to work on my shot in practice.”

Nabokov made eight saves in all, including one in which he lunged across the crease to rob Ottawa forward Daniel Alfredsson.

NHL All-Star Games are notorious for their lack of defense and non-existent hitting. No goalie had pitched a single-period shutout in All-Star competition since Nikolai Khabibulin in 2002.

Nabokov didn’t fare so well in his one previous All-Star experience, giving up five goals on 16 third-period shots and getting tagged with the loss in the 2001 game. But after playing 48 games in a tight Pacific Division race, he said he looked on the All-Star Game strictly as an opportunity to have fun.

“No pressure,” he said. “You go out and if they score, they score.”

Nabokov, of course, wasn’t the only All-Star to have a big night. Columbus forward Rick Nash had a hat trick. Staal scored twice and had an assist on the goal by Boston forward Marc Savard that won the game with 21 seconds left in the third period.

Sharks coach Ron Wilson, who was behind the West bench as an assistant to Detroit’s Mike Babcock, praised Nabokov’s effort and his sense of showmanship.

“He was unbelievable,” Wilson said. “The little bit of hot dog that Nabby has, he was able to exhibit that and I think it was good for the game. … He made it fun.”

The Sharks goalie said the thought of winning MVP honors never crossed his mind.

“One period? It’s nothing when the guys are playing three periods,” Nabokov explained.

Wilson, however, joked that the prospect of a new vehicle is what inspired his goalie.

“I think unfortunately he thought they were going to hand out a Lada — you know, the Russian car, for MVP and that’s why he tried so hard,” the Sharks coach said. “He needs a new Lada back in Russia.”

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